Audiobook Review: The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese

I read Cutting for Stone and really enjoyed it. Verghese is such a great storyteller. So when I saw The Covenant of Water, there was no hesitation on my part. And I was totally correct. I think this is one of my new favorite books of all time.

I'm inserting part of the amazon.com description, because I can't do better: Spanning the years 1900 to 1977, The Covenant of Water is set in Kerala, on South India’s Malabar Coast, and follows three generations of a family that suffers a peculiar affliction: in every generation, at least one person dies by drowning—and in Kerala, water is everywhere. At the turn of the century, a twelve-year-old girl from Kerala’s long-existing Christian community, grieving the death of her father, is sent by boat to her wedding, where she will meet her forty-year-old husband for the first time. From this unforgettable new beginning, the young girl—and future matriarch, known as Big Ammachi—will witness unthinkable changes over the span of her extraordinary life, full of joy and triumph as well as hardship and loss, her faith and love the only constants.

There is so much to this story, much like Cutting for Stone. It spans generations. It takes you from India to Ireland (and you have to just be patient to see how things all fit together.) The characters are so richly detailed that they feel like a part of your own life. My only complaint is that I wasn't ready for it to end. There were some situations that I would have liked more resolution, although the ending is comfortable. It isn't a cliffhanger or anything. But I was so involved that it felt abrupt.

Verghese narrates the audiobook himself and is superb. He has an accent, but it is appropriate and easily understood.

It is a long story, but it flies by. I highly recommend the audio version. The only thing I didn't realize is that there are illustrations. So either get a copy of the book or go to  https://www.abrahamverghese.org/the-covenant-of-water/. I wished I had known this while reading because I would have liked to see the illustrations at the proper part of the story as I was listening. The Covenant of Water will stick with me for a long time.

Published by Grove, May 2, 2023
Audiobook obtained from libro.fm
736 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Book Review: Lady Tan's Circle of Women by Lisa See

I have enjoyed several of Lisa See's books, and Lady Tan's Circle of Women is no exception. She has a way of writing that draws you into the lives and environment of the characters in ancient China.

I'm going to copy the description from amazon.com. I don't usually do that, but this is a good one. Here's the thing. I went on a month-long camping trip and finished 80% of this book. Then, I got home a month ago and had the yard, the garden, the grandkids, and just generally catching up. So I just now finished this book. And we are leaving on another camping trip today. So that's my excuse (if you've made it this far.)

According to Confucius, “an educated woman is a worthless woman,” but Tan Yunxian—born into an elite family, yet haunted by death, separations, and loneliness—is being raised by her grandparents to be of use. Her grandmother is one of only a handful of female doctors in China, and she teaches Yunxian the pillars of Chinese medicine, the Four Examinations—looking, listening, touching, and asking—something a man can never do with a female patient.

From a young age, Yunxian learns about women’s illnesses, many of which relate to childbearing, alongside a young midwife-in-training, Meiling. The two girls find fast friendship and a mutual purpose—despite the prohibition that a doctor should never touch blood while a midwife comes in frequent contact with it—and they vow to be forever friends, sharing in each other’s joys and struggles. No mud, no lotus, they tell themselves: from adversity beauty can bloom.

But when Yunxian is sent into an arranged marriage, her mother-in-law forbids her from seeing Meiling and from helping the women and girls in the household. Yunxian is to act like a proper wife—embroider bound-foot slippers, pluck instruments, recite poetry, give birth to sons, and stay forever within the walls of the family compound, the Garden of Fragrant Delights.

How might a woman like Yunxian break free of these traditions, go on to treat women and girls from every level of society, and lead a life of such importance that many of her remedies are still used five centuries later? How might the power of friendship support or complicate these efforts? Lady Tan’s Circle of Women is a captivating story of women helping other women. It is also a triumphant reimagining of the life of a woman who was remarkable in the Ming dynasty and would be considered remarkable today.

See's books are so easy to read. The belief system of 15th-century China is fascinating. Foot binding, how women were treated, the class system, childbirth, all of it. If you are interested in the topic, I highly recommend Lady Tan's Circle of Women.

Published by Scribner, June 6, 2023
eARC obtained from Edelweiss+
368 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Book Review: A Promise of Ruin by Cuyler Overholt @CuylerOverholt ‏

In my review for A Deadly Affection, I commented that I was thoroughly entertained by the main character.  I continue my affection for Dr. Genevieve Summerford in this second book, A Promise of Ruin.

Genevieve is a doctor of psychiatry in the early 1900s.  So, she's a woman doctor, which is almost unheard of.  And her specialty is psychiatry, which is not a very respected specialty, even among male doctors.  A Promise of Ruin doesn't focus too much on her role as a physician, but once again, she's involved in the investigation of a crime, or in this case many crimes.  It seems women are being kidnapped as they arrive in this country, expecting to marry their sweetheart.  Instead, they are kidnapped and forced into prostitution.

I do like that Genevieve keeps the police in the loop about what she finds out in her investigation.  And at least some of the police believe her and try to look into these disappearances.  Her relationship with Simon has not progressed, and Genevieve is disappointed that he doesn't seem interested.

She's determined to find out what is going on, and of course, ends up putting herself in harm's way. I did think that A Promise of Ruin took a bit longer to get going, but by the halfway point, I had to finish. I couldn't put it down. I appreciate her determination to find the truth and her manipulation of a society that isn't very conducive to women doing anything of any importance.

Being a fan of historical fiction and mysteries, these books just hit the right spot for me. I know at times Genevieve is a bit lucky, but that's part of the fun.  I hope Overholt continues this series because I'm in! If you have teens that enjoy these genres, the Dr. Genevieve Summerford Mysteries Series is totally appropriate for them.

Published by Sourcebooks Landmark, August 8, 2017
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
320 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: The Stellow Project, by Shari Becker

The Stellow Project is a fast-paced, entertaining novel with an interesting premise.

A big storm is going to hit New York, so Lilah’s dad wants her and her sister to go with their friend to their summer cabin in the mountains to ride it out.

Her father is away on business but will meet them at the cabin. After a harrowing journey to the cabin, they feel safer. But when Lilah doesn’t hear from her father, and then he doesn’t show at the cabin, she is worried. There’s also a strange car that seems to be following the girls.

Lilah is on medication to help her breathe. Without it she may die, and her dad is the one that gets it for her. And, of course, she runs out of medication. Lilah becomes very ill and wakes up in a hospital after being taken there by one of the kids in the town, Daniel. Turns out this isn’t just an ordinary hospital, it’s at a research facility, and Daniel’s mom is the head scientist. Lilah’s sister is being cared for by an older woman in the compound. So are they guests or prisoners? And where is Lilah’s dad? It has been broadcast on the news that he is wanted for shutting down the satellite system that predicts the weather thereby causing the storm to be much more devastating to the population of New York. Who can she trust?

The mystery surrounding the research facility, Lilah’s dad, and Lilah’s disease is intriguing and all linked together. As Lilah figures things out little by little, she realizes that she needs to escape. But where should she go? In the meantime, she has become romantically involved with Daniel and has begun to trust him.

Lilah becomes stronger as the story goes on. It’s easy to root for her. The writing is easy and the pacing is steady. I enjoyed getting lost in this tense story.

The ending, however, is disappointing. Once again, there isn’t an ending. You just turn the page and the book stops. I understand that publishers do this to sell books, but this is not an acceptable literary technique. There is no climax or denouement. Nothing has been resolved. Every time I have to write a review when a book  ends like this, I tell myself not to rant too much – but I can’t help it. I can’t stand it when a book isn’t a book – you need the rest of the series.

So, while I enjoyed The Stellow Project quite a bit, the ending left such a bad taste in my mouth. I really want to know what happens to Lilah, but I’m too angry to care right now. I’d suggest waiting until all the books are released to read The Stellow Project. I’ll recommend this to my students, but I’ll make sure they know about the cliffhanger ending.

Published by Skyscape, June 23, 2015
ARC obtained from Library Media Connection Magazine
318 pages

Rating: 3.5/5

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Book Review: Tabula Rasa, by Kristen Lippert-Martin

Tabula Rasa is a great teen survival story that is action packed.

Sarah is in a hospital in the middle of nowhere. She's having all her memories erased via an experimental procedure called Tabula Rasa (latin for "blank slate".) She believes that she somehow was a bad person, or is suffering from debilitating PTSD, so she has been sent here to have this procedure done.

Things go wrong during one of her procedures; the hospital becomes under attack and Sarah is running for her life in the middle of one of the worst blizzards ever. She teams up with a boy who helps her survive. Sarah has taken two pills given to her anonymously, and her memories have started to come back. But they must find the third pill that Sarah needs to take in order to get all her memories back, or else she will be brain damaged. And she must take the pill 24 hours after the last one.

Tabula Rasa moves. There's always something going on, and some new danger to face. There's some scary bad guys, and also some characters that keep you guessing. And a romance slowly develops, but doesn't take over the story. Sarah slowly figures out her past, and of course she was being deceived. But why?

My issue with Tabula Rasa is the entire premise. It's way out there--not really easy to believe. But once you go with it and just enjoy the survival story and the characters it is very entertaining.

The ending of Tabula Rasa comes together nicely, and things are resolved. Teens who love a fast-paced adventure and a heroine who just won't give up will enjoy Tabula Rasa.

Published by EgmontUSA (September 23, 2014)
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
352 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Audiobook Review: Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese

Cutting for Stone is a rich, beautiful, epic story of the life of twins in Ethiopia, although I did find it a bit heavy with detail.

Marion Stone is the narrator of Cutting for Stone. He has a twin, Shiva. These twins were born in Ethiopia in a poor hospital where their mother, Sister Mary Joseph Praise, and their father (a doctor) worked. Sister Mary Joseph Praise was Indian and their father from Britain, so even though the twins spend their entire childhood in Ethiopia, they are not natives.

Their mother dies in childbirth, and the twins are almost lost too. Their father, Thomas Stone, disappears, so Marion and Shiva are raised by two doctors at the hospital in Ethiopia. Their lives are surrounded by love, by the hospital, and by Ethiopian life. At times, politics gets in the way -- Ethiopia becomes very unstable. So much so, that Marion must leave and ends up in America. He becomes a surgeon like his father and his stepfather.

There is so much to this story. You learn every detail about the lives of the main characters (and I haven't even mentioned all of them.) You learn everything about Ethiopia. You learn almost everything about being a surgeon in a poor hospital (both in Ethiopia and in New York.) Honestly, it's almost too much. If I had been reading the print book rather than listening to the audiobook, I may have given up.

But I like my audiobooks "epic" and Cutting for Stone fit that requirement perfectly. Verghese is a master storyteller. Unexpected things happen. A lot happens. After all, this story follows the twins through almost their entire lives. You will feel a lot of emotions: sadness, fear, tension, and love.  After all, you will know these characters VERY well.

I highly recommend the audiobook. Sunil Malhotra, the narrator, speaks with an Indian accent, but it is very easy to understand and really adds a lot to the telling of Cutting for Stone.

If you are in the mood for a detailed, atmospheric book that will immerse you into the culture and lives of its characters, give Cutting for Stone a try.

Published by Knopf, 2009
Copy obtained from the library
560 pages

Rating: 4/5

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